Courtyard House: In this life, I have a new home!

Li Weidong was about to follow, intending to disable the old woman first. But then Xu Damao's wheelchair blocked his way.

"Chief Engineer Li, I beg you! Only you can cure my illness..."

Xu Damao, his face covered in snot and tears, pleaded pitifully.

He's been to every hospital in the last two days, but all the doctors have told him to just adopt a child.

Li Weidong kicked aside the wheelchair and strode into the Intermediate People's Court.

But when he arrived, he was still too late. He gave a bitter smile.

The deaf old woman threw her cane aside, grabbed Huaihua's hair with one hand, and held a sharp knife to the child's neck with the other.

The locust flower was so frightened that it cried loudly.

Several policemen and soldiers stood nearby, escorting two handcuffed prisoners. All the guns were pointed at the deaf old woman.

Factory Director Yang also arrived with his men. Besides Jin Da and Jin Er, there were also Yi Zhonghai and Sha Zhu, who were handcuffed.

"Grandma! What are you doing? Let go of Huaihua!"

Sha Zhu shouted anxiously, "If you do this, Sister Qin will be so heartbroken!"

The deaf old woman chuckled: "Silly Zhuzi, your life has been ruined by that woman. I regret it so much, I regret not killing her sooner. I regret even more not giving you those things sooner."

"It's too late to say anything now."

"You and Zhonghai can collect my body. I've lived for almost eighty years, which isn't a short life."

Upon hearing this, Yi Zhonghai breathed a sigh of relief. The deaf old woman was implying that she wouldn't betray him. In exchange, she wanted to die with some dignity, with someone to collect her body.

"Don't worry. Whoever you are, you're just an ordinary old woman in this courtyard. Release the child and accept your punishment. If you really get shot, then the matter will be settled after death. I'll collect your body!"

Yi Zhonghai looked deeply moved.

"Release the child! Where can you run to with her as a hostage?"

Director Zhang's gun was steadily pointed at the deaf old woman.

The deaf old woman grinned and lowered her voice, saying, "Silly Zhu, don't worry, they won't trace it back to you. No matter how much they investigate, they'll never find anything to do with me."

She paused, then added, "Stay away from that woman from now on, or else..."

She didn't continue, and sighed, "Never mind, I can't leave you anything."

"Li Weidong, it's all your fault. If you hadn't come back, I wouldn't have been exposed. Why didn't that shot kill you!"

"I've managed to drag this little girl down with me today, so I'm not at a loss."

Xiao Dang was being held back by Yu Mei, and he desperately tried to rush over and pull his sister away.

Li Weidong nodded in approval as he watched this scene. In the original story, the Jia family had spoiled these two children, but it seemed there was still time to bring them back on track.

The deaf old woman shouted at Li Weidong, "Hey Li, if you want to save this little girl, hand yourself over—"

"Fine, I'll go up there and let you stab me?"

Li Weidong took a step forward.

"Don't move!"

The deaf old woman pressed the knife against Huaihua's neck. "Take one more step and I'll slit her throat right now! You think you can play mind games with me? I got tired of these tricks when I was young."

"You're a trained fighter; if you get close, how can I possibly survive?"

The old lady knew exactly what was going on.

Director Zhang leaned close to Platoon Leader Wang's ear and whispered, "Old Wang, are you a good shot? Did you manage to hit her in the head?"

Platoon Leader Wang frowned: "You can hit her in the head, but even if her head is blown open, her muscles will twitch, and you can still cut her with a knife."

Director Zhang looked annoyed: "I should have known better than to alert them. It would have been so much easier to just pin them down and interrogate them slowly."

"I thought she was too old to cause any trouble, but who knew she was such a tough nut to crack."

At this moment, Li Weidong took out a large needle, held it up in his palm for the deaf old woman to see clearly: "I'll take this needle and stick it into my own throat. You put the locust flowers in it, how about that?"

The deaf old woman sneered, "Don't try to fool me. Do you think I'm a three-year-old?"

A sinister grin spread across her face. "Fine, if you really want to change people, go grab a kitchen knife and slit your own throat!"

Yi Zhonghai stood to the side, hoping that Li Weidong would actually do it.

Secretary Zhang and Factory Director Yang shouted at the same time, "Chief Engineer Li, don't be foolish! Even if you do as she says, she won't release him."

Li Huaide chimed in, "Why waste words with her! Let's just fight! You're a specially approved talent by the state; we'd trade several of our lives for you, how can we exchange you for a little girl? No way!"

Sha Zhu called out from behind, "Alright, alright! Grandma keeps her word! Li Weidong, hurry up! Otherwise, if Huaihua dies, Sister Qin will be devastated!"

The two men holding Sha Zhu were furious. One of them raised his hand and swung the butt of his gun, slamming it hard into Sha Zhu's back.

"Thump!"

After a muffled thud, Sha Zhu was knocked to the ground, howling in pain.

The deaf old woman was momentarily distracted. In that instant, Li Weidong gently raised his hand, and the large needle flew out of his grasp.

A red string, about ten centimeters long, was tied to the eye of the needle. This red string was used to keep the large needle balanced when it flew, preventing it from flipping over mid-flight.

A red shadow flashed by, and the large needle pierced the deaf old woman's elbow. A loud clang followed.

With a thud, the sharp little knife fell to the ground.

Li Weidong moved swiftly, appearing right in front of the deaf old woman. He grabbed the locust blossoms with his left hand and swung his right hand, "smack, smack!"

Two slaps landed on the deaf old woman's face.

Two police officers rushed over, pinned the deaf old woman to the ground, and quickly handcuffed her.

When Li Weidong shoved the locust flowers at the little girl who rushed over, the deaf old lady opened her mouth and spat out several mouthfuls of blood, mixed with a few teeth.

All her teeth had been knocked out. She didn't have many left to begin with, and now she had none at all. The way she looked at Li Weidong was as if she wanted to devour him alive.

Fuck your mother!

Factory Director Yang rushed forward and kicked Sha Zhu several times, yelling, "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Hand it over to the police and let them investigate at their own pace."

Secretary Zhang said with a stern face.

"Sir, sir, we're neighbors with that deaf old lady, we're quite close. We really didn't know she was an enemy agent."

Yi Zhonghai hurriedly explained.

"Whether we know or not, we'll have to check first."

Li Huaide said this in a gloomy tone.

When Yi Zhonghai saw Li Huaide's expression, his heart skipped a beat, knowing that something big was about to happen. Even if he could clear himself of any connection with the deaf old lady, if Li Huaide got involved, he would definitely cause trouble.

"take away!"

Platoon Leader Wang waved his hand, and several soldiers escorted the deaf old woman out. Before leaving, they saluted Li Weidong.

Director Zhang and his group didn't leave; they went straight into the deaf old lady's house and searched it.

Sha Zhu and Yi Zhonghai were taken away by two police officers. Yu Mei stood there, her face ashen, watching everything unfold.

Jia Zhangshi stood at her doorstep, holding onto the stick, watching the commotion as if it were a play. Even though Huaihua had been in such danger, neither of them showed the slightest sign of tension.

In real life, Bang Geng is even worse than the character he portrays in the show. In the drama, at least the guy knows how to care for his two younger sisters, but in real life, he treats them like a burden and wishes they didn't exist so he could get more good food.

"Director Yang, would you like to come to my house for a cup of tea?"

Li Weidong greeted them.

Factory Director Yang clicked his tongue, then clapped his hands in admiration: "Well done, Weidong! Your skill with hidden weapons is truly exceptional!"

"I won't drink the tea; I have to go back to the factory and keep an eye on things."

The Jin brothers stood to one side, their faces full of admiration, listening to Li Weidong and Factory Director Yang talk.

Li Weidong casually mentioned, "By the way, these two also did a good job today. Although they are a bit old, they are both genuine Bajiquan experts."

"Let them get registered in the security department, like guarding the gate or something, that'll be perfectly safe."

Factory Director Yang nodded without hesitation: "No problem. Being able to find that spy in our residential compound is already a great achievement."

"What are your own thoughts?"

Li Weidong turned to look at Jin Da and Jin Er.

The two brothers clasped their hands in unison and said, "Alright, we'll follow Mr. Li's arrangements."

At this time, the courtyard was crowded with onlookers, and even people from several neighboring courtyards came to join in.

Li Weidong waved his hand: "Alright, alright, there's nothing to see here, everyone disperse."

The people in the neighboring courtyard dared not linger; even if they wanted to watch the spectacle, there was nothing they could do. The area was inhabited by the families of the steel mill workers, and every household had someone working at the factory. Who would dare offend Li Weidong?

When Director Yang and his group left, Li Weidong saw them off all the way to the gate. Just as he was about to turn back home after watching the car drive away, he saw Liu Haizhong's wife, Zhang Cuihua, coming back from outside with a lunchbox in her hand.

Liu Haizhong was taken to the hospital; the doctor said he had suffered a mild stroke and would need to stay for a while. Zhang Cuihua has been running back and forth every day to deliver his meals.

The moment she saw Li Weidong, her eyes were filled with venom, as if she wanted to devour him whole.

In her heart, if it weren't for the man surnamed Li, her old man would never be lying in a hospital bed.

Li Weidong's lips curled into a sneer. This was nothing. From now on, none of these beasts would escape.

He turned and entered the courtyard, where he bumped into Yan Bugui.

Yan Bugui now trembles all over as if he's been electrocuted whenever he sees Li Weidong.

He knew perfectly well that all those messy things involving Liu Haizhong, the deaf old woman, Yi Zhonghai, and Sha Zhu were inextricably linked to Li Weidong. And then there was Jia Dongxu's life.

These things all started happening one after another after Li Weidong returned. And all of these people had a grudge against Li Weidong.

"Chief Engineer Li! Chief Engineer Li! I have something I want to tell you!"

Yan Bugui gritted his teeth and shouted out, forcing himself to speak.

Li Weidong's face held a hint of disdain: "You want to talk to me? What serious business could you possibly have?"

Yan Bugui's face was filled with anxiety, and his voice trembled: "Chief Engineer Li, I admit I was wrong. I shouldn't have tried to take advantage of your family. I'm a scoundrel!"

Li Weidong stared at him, his smile cold: "Yan Bugui, this is nothing!"

"You've been plotting behind the scenes, using nothing but underhanded tricks."

Li Weidong lowered his voice, "You think you can escape? There's still a long way to go, we'll settle this score slowly."

After saying that, he turned and left, leaving Yan Bugui standing there alone, his face as white as paper.

Li Weidong walked to the Intermediate Court, where Director Zhang and his team were carrying things out of the deaf old woman's room. There were over a dozen large yellow croakers neatly stacked, and a thick stack of large black crosses.

A young police officer muttered, "Logically speaking, she should definitely have a gun."

Director Zhang shook his head: "She threw it away a long time ago. If she hadn't been without weapons, would she have held a knife to the child?"

"She never imagined that she would still fail in the end."

Li Weidong didn't look any further. He returned to his front door and knocked twice: "Xiaorou, open the door."